Regulations Amending the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations: SOR/2024-97

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 158, Number 12

Registration
SOR/2024-97 May 27, 2024

FISHERIES ACT

P.C. 2024-573 May 24, 2024

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations under subsection 36(5) and paragraphs 43(1)(g.1)footnote a, (g.2)footnote a and (h) of the Fisheries Act footnote b.

Regulations Amending the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations

Amendments

1 (1) The definitions aquatic species and protected species in section 1 of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations footnote 1 are repealed.

(2) The definitions final discharge point, hydraulic retention time and suspended solids in section 1 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

final discharge point
means any point of a wastewater system, other than an overflow point, beyond which the owner or operator of the system no longer exercises control over the quality of the wastewater before it is deposited as effluent in water or a place. (point de rejet final)
hydraulic retention time,
in relation to a wastewater system, means the average period during which wastewater is retained for treatment and storage prior to release from that system. (temps de rétention hydraulique)
suspended solids or SS
means any solid matter contained in effluent that is retained on a filter that has a nominal pore size of 1.5 micrometres or smaller. (matières en suspension ou MES)

(3) The definition quarter in section 1 of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

quarter,
in respect of a year, means a period of three months that begins on the first day of January, April, July or October. (trimestre)

(4) The definition dérivation in section 1 of the French version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

dérivation
S’agissant des eaux usées :
  • a) soit leur détournement vers un point de débordement;
  • b) soit le contournement ou la soustraction d’une ou de plusieurs des étapes du traitement qui leur serait normalement appliqué avant leur rejet comme effluent, dans des eaux ou autres lieux visés au paragraphe 36(3) de la Loi, à partir du point de rejet final. (bypass)

(5) Paragraph (a) of the definition point d’entrée in section 1 of the French version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(6) Section 1 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:

authorized representative
means
  • (a) in respect of an owner or operator who is an individual, that individual or another individual or an entity that is authorized to act on their behalf;
  • (b) in respect of an owner or operator that is a corporation, an employee of the corporation, or another individual or an entity that is authorized to act on behalf of the corporation; and
  • (c) in respect of an owner or operator that is an entity other than a corporation, an individual or entity that is authorized to act on its behalf. (représentant autorisé)
composite sample
means
  • (a) a composite sample as defined by the government of the province where the wastewater system is located, or under an Act of Parliament, if the definition applies to the wastewater system;
  • (b) a quantity of effluent consisting of not less than three equal volumes or three volumes proportionate to the rate of flow that have been collected at approximately equal time intervals over
    • (i) the period during which effluent is deposited, if effluent is deposited only during part of the day, or
    • (ii) a sampling period of not less than seven hours and not more than 24 hours, if effluent is deposited throughout the day; or
  • (c) a quantity of effluent collected continuously at a constant rate or at a rate proportionate to the rate of flow of the effluent over
    • (i) the period during which effluent is deposited, if effluent is deposited only during part of the day, or
    • (ii) a sampling period of not less than seven hours and not more than 24 hours, if effluent is deposited throughout the day. (échantillon composite)
licensed professional
means a licensed member of an engineering or scientific professional organization who has technical expertise in the field in question. (professionnel agréé)
protected aquatic species
means an aquatic species as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Species at Risk Act that is
  • (a) a species at risk as defined in that subsection or a species that is listed in Schedule 1 to that Act; or
  • (b) a species that is protected — or classified as an endangered species or threatened species as defined in that subsection — under the laws of a province. (espèce aquatique protégée)

(7) Section 1 of the English version of the Regulations is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:

bypass,
in relation to wastewater, means
  • (a) the diversion of wastewater to an overflow point; or
  • (b) the circumvention or the removal of one or more treatment steps normally applied to the wastewater before it is deposited as effluent, in any water or place referred to in subsection 36(3) of the Act, via a final discharge point. (dérivation)

2 The portion of subsection 2(1) of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Application

2 (1) These Regulations apply in respect of a wastewater system that, when it deposits effluent via one or more final discharge points, deposits a deleterious substance prescribed in section 5 in any water or place referred to in subsection 36(3) of the Act and that

3 Section 4 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Consolidated wastewater systems

4 (1) If an owner of at least two original wastewater systems — none of which treats its wastewater in a manner that would permit the deposit of effluent, via its final discharge points, that meets the condition set out in paragraph 6(1)(a) or (b) — plans to consolidate those original wastewater systems into a future consolidated wastewater system, the original wastewater systems that will be consolidated constitute a fictional consolidated wastewater system during the period beginning on the day on which a consolidation plan that meets the requirements of subsection (3) is received by an authorization officer and ending on the day on which the future consolidated wastewater system is put into service.

Final discharge point

(2) The final discharge point of the fictional consolidated wastewater system is considered to be the final discharge point of the original wastewater systems that is allocated the greatest number of points under the table to Schedule 2.

Consolidation plan

(3) The consolidation plan must contain a description of the modifications to be made to each of the original wastewater systems, including a description of the modifications to be made to their processes, so that the effluent deposited via the final discharge point of the future consolidated wastewater system will not be acutely lethal and will meet the conditions for authorization set out in subsection 6(1), along with a schedule for implementation of the plan.

4 (1) The portion of subsection 6(1) of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Authorization to deposit

6 (1) For the purpose of paragraph 36(4)(b) of the Act, the owner or operator of a wastewater system may — during a given calendar year, quarter or month, as determined in accordance with subsection (2) — deposit or permit the deposit of effluent that contains any of the deleterious substances prescribed in section 5 of these Regulations via each of the system’s final discharge points in any water or place referred to in subsection 36(3) of the Act if the effluent is not acutely lethal as determined in accordance with section 15, the maximum concentration of un-ionized ammonia in the effluent is less than 1.25 mg/L, expressed as nitrogen (N), at 15˚C ± 1˚C, and — during the previous calendar year, previous quarter or previous month, as the case may be — the effluent met the following conditions:

(2) Subsection 6(1) of the Regulations is amended by adding “and” at the end of paragraph (b), by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (c) and by repealing paragraph (d).

(3) Subsections 6(2) to (6) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

Averaging periods

(2) The maximum concentration and the averages referred to in subsection (1) must be determined on the following basis:

Determination of averages

(3) The averages referred to in paragraphs (1)(a) and (b) must be determined

Determinations for additional samples

(4) The determination of averages made in accordance with subsection (3) must take into account the results of the determination, by a laboratory referred to in section 16, of the elements referred to in subsection 10(6) for any sample in excess of the number of samples required by subsections 10(1) to (4).

Average of SS during certain months

(5) For an intermittent wastewater system or a continuous wastewater system with a hydraulic retention time of five or more days, the determination of the average referred to in paragraph (1)(b) is not to take into account the result of any determination of the concentration of suspended solids in a sample of effluent referred to in paragraph 10(6)(b) that was taken during any four months during the period beginning on May 1 and ending on November 30, if that result is greater than 25 mg/L and is caused by a bloom of algae or proliferation of aquatic invertebrates.

SS average deemed 0 mg/L

(6) If subsection (5) applies to every sample referred to in paragraph (3)(a) or (b) that is used to determine the average referred to in paragraph (1)(b), that average is deemed to be 0 mg/L.

(4) Paragraphs 6(7)(b) and (c) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(5) Subsection 6(7) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (f), by adding “and” at the end of paragraph (g) and by adding the following after paragraph (g):

5 (1) The portion of subsection 7(1) of the Regulations before paragraph (c) is replaced by the following:

Average daily volume deposited annually

7 (1) The owner or operator of a wastewater system must, for each calendar year, calculate the average daily volume of effluent deposited via all of the system’s final discharge points by

(2) Clause 7(2)(a)(i)(A) of the French version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(A) soit une mesure en continu du volume de l’affluent, ou de l’effluent rejeté à partir du point de rejet final, au cours de ce jour,

(2) Paragraph 7(2)(b) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(3) The portion of subsection 7(3) of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Daily volume estimate — rate of flow

(3) For the purpose of paragraph (1)(a), if the owner or operator estimates the daily volume of effluent deposited via the final discharge point based on the measured rate of flow referred to in clause (2)(a)(i)(B) or (b)(i)(B), the estimation is to be done as follows:

(4) Subsection 7(4) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Method of estimation

(4) The owner or operator of a wastewater system who has established a method of estimation of the volume of effluent must ensure that it is based on generally accepted engineering practices and use it to estimate the daily volume of effluent deposited via the final discharge point with a margin of error of ±15%.

6 Subsections 9(1) to (3) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

Requirements

9 (1) The owner or operator of a wastewater system must install monitoring equipment that provides a continuous measure of the daily volume or of the rate of flow of the influent or effluent.

Maintenance

(2) The owner or operator must maintain the monitoring equipment so that it may be used to determine the volume of effluent deposited via the final discharge point.

Calibration

(3) The owner or operator must calibrate the monitoring equipment in accordance with the recommendations of the manufacturer or licensed professional or, in the absence of such recommendations, must calibrate the equipment at least once in every calendar year and at least five months after the most recent calibration.

7 Section 10 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Taking of samples — intermittent wastewater system

10 (1) The owner or operator of an intermittent wastewater system must, during each period referred to in paragraph 3(a), take at each of the system’s final discharge points a grab or composite sample of effluent at the following minimum frequencies:

Taking of samples prior to deposit

(2) Despite subsection (1), if a grab or composite sample of effluent has been collected at a sampling location referred to in subsection (5) within two weeks of the period referred to in paragraph 3(a) for the government of the province where the wastewater system is located or under an Act of Parliament, and if the determinations referred to in subsection (6) and, if applicable, paragraph 38(b) were made, the owner or operator of a system is not required to take a sample during the first 30 days of deposit and may use the results of the determinations made on the sample of effluent collected prior to deposit.

Taking of samples — continuous wastewater system

(3) The owner or operator of a continuous wastewater system must take at each of the system’s final discharge points, during each calendar year, a sample of effluent of the type set out in column 2 of the table to this subsection that corresponds to the average daily volume of effluent set out in column 1 that is deposited via all final discharge points during the previous calendar year and must do so at the frequency set out in column 3.

TABLE
Item

Column 1

Average Daily Volume, Deposited (m3)

Column 2

Type of Sample To Be Taken

Column 3

Minimum Sampling Frequency
1 ≤ 2 500 Grab or composite Monthly, with each sample taken at least 10 days after any previous sample
2 > 2 500 and ≤ 17 500 Composite Every two weeks, but at least seven days after any previous sample
3 > 17 500 and ≤ 50 000 Composite Weekly, with each sample taken at least five days after any previous sample
4 > 50 000 Composite Three days per week, with each sample taken at least one day after any previous sample

Sampling and frequency — exception

(4) Despite subsection (3), the owner or operator of a continuous wastewater system with a hydraulic retention time of five or more days, or of a continuous wastewater system that is the subject of a transitional authorization, may

Taking of samples — other sampling location

(5) Despite subsections (1) and (4), the owner or operator of an intermittent wastewater system, or of a continuous wastewater system with a hydraulic retention time of five or more days, may take a grab or composite sample of effluent at a sampling location other than the final discharge point if the sampling location yields a representative sample as if the sample had been collected at the final discharge point and if the sampling location and sampling procedure are determined by a licensed professional.

Determination — certain deleterious substances

(6) The owner or operator must, for each sample referred to in subsection (1) to (4), determine or cause the determination of the following elements:

8 Section 11 is replaced by the following:

Taking of samples — intermittent wastewater system

11 (1) The owner or operator of an intermittent wastewater system must take at each of the system’s final discharge points, for each period referred to in paragraph 3(a) during each calendar year, a grab sample of effluent on the day a deposit begins if the average daily volume of effluent deposited via all of the final discharge points during the previous calendar year was more than 2 500 m3.

Taking of samples — continuous wastewater system

(2) The owner or operator of a continuous wastewater system must take at each of the system’s final discharge points, during each calendar year, a grab sample of effluent at the minimum sampling frequency set out in column 2 of the table to this subsection that corresponds to the average daily volume of effluent set out in column 1 deposited via all of the system’s final discharge points during the previous calendar year.

TABLE
Item

Column 1

Average Daily Volume Deposited (m3)

Column 2

Minimum Sampling Frequency
1 > 2 500 and ≤ 50 000 Quarterly, with each sample taken at least 60 days after any previous sample
2 > 50 000 Monthly, with each sample taken at least 21 days after any previous sample

Acute lethality

(3) For each sample taken under subsection (1) or (2), the owner or operator must determine or cause the determination of whether it is acutely lethal in accordance with section 15.

Additional tests

(4) If a sample is determined to be acutely lethal, the owner or operator must take a grab sample without delay, and then subsequently once every two weeks, but at least seven days after the previous sample, and determine or cause the determination of whether it is acutely lethal in accordance with section 15.

Consecutive samples — not acutely lethal

(5) If three consecutive samples taken in accordance with subsection (4) are determined not to be acutely lethal, subsections (1) to (3) apply to subsequent samples.

Subsequent samples

(6) For greater certainty, subsection (4) applies to any subsequent sample referred to in subsection (5) that is determined to be acutely lethal when tested under subsection (3).

Change in sampling frequency

(7) The minimum sampling frequency set out in column 2 of the table to subsection (2) is reduced

9 Section 13 of the French version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Matières en suspension

13 La concentration de matières en suspension dans l’effluent est établie au moyen d’un essai de détermination des matières en suspension.

10 The description of “total ammonia” in subsection 14(1) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

total ammonia
is the concentration of total ammonia determined in accordance with subsection (2), expressed in mg/L as nitrogen (N); and

11 Section 16 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Accredited laboratory

16 Any determination referred to in subsection 10(6) or 11(3) or (4) or paragraph 34(1)(a) or (b) or subsection 34(4) and any other determination necessary to make any of those determinations — other than the determination of the pH of water necessary to make the determination referred to in subsection 34(3) — must be performed by a laboratory that meets the following conditions at the time of the determination:

12 (1) The portion of paragraph 17(a) of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(2) Clause 17(a)(iii)(B) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(B) for a wastewater system whose daily volume of effluent referred to in paragraph 7(1)(a) was determined using a method of estimation in accordance with subsection 7(4), the estimated daily volume, expressed in m3 and the method of estimation that was used, and

(3) Paragraph 17(c) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of subparagraph (iii) and by adding the following after subparagraph (iv):

(4) The portion of paragraph 17(d) of the Regulations before subparagraph (ii) is replaced by the following:

(5) Paragraph 17(d) of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after subparagraph (ii):

(6) Paragraph 17(e) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

13 (1) Clauses 18(1)(d)(iii)(A) and (B) of the English version of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(2) Clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of the Regulations is replaced by the following

(3) Paragraph 18(1)(d) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of subparagraph (iii) and by replacing subparagraph (iv) with the following:

(4) The portion of subparagraph 18(1)(f)(ii) of the French version of the Regulations before clause (A) is replaced by the following:

(5) Subparagraph 18(1)(f)(iii) of the French version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(6) The portion of paragraph 18(1)(h) of the French version of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(7) Paragraph 18(1)(i) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(8) Subsection 18(2) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Required information — fictional consolidated wastewater system

(2) Despite subsection (1), the owner or operator of a fictional consolidated wastewater system must send an identification report, for each of the original wastewater systems that constitute the fictional system, containing a statement as to whether the final discharge point of that original wastewater system is, in accordance with subsection 4(2), considered to be the final discharge point of the fictional consolidated wastewater system.

(9) Subsections 18(4) to (6) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

Electronic report

(4) The identification report must be sent electronically, within 45 days after the day on which the wastewater system is put into service, in the form and format specified by the Minister of the Environment and must bear the electronic signature of the owner or operator or their authorized representative.

Paper report

(5) If the Minister of the Environment has not specified an electronic form and format or if it is not feasible to send the report electronically in accordance with subsection (4) because of circumstances beyond the control of the owner or operator, the report must be sent on paper, signed by the owner or operator, or their authorized representative, and in the form and format specified by the Minister of the Environment, if applicable.

Change of information

(6) If the information provided in the identification report changes, the owner or operator or authorized representative must update the identification report no later than 45 days after the day on which the change is made.

14 The heading before section 19 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Monitoring Report and Notice

15 (1) The portion of subsection 19(1) of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Information

19 (1) The owner or operator of a wastewater system must send, within 45 days after the end of the period referred to in subsection (2), to the authorization officer, for each final discharge point, a monitoring report containing the following information:

(2) Subparagraph 19(1)(b)(iii) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(3) Subparagraphs 19(1)(b)(v) and (vi) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(4) The portion of paragraph 19(2)(a) of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(5) Subparagraph 19(2)(a)(ii) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(6) Paragraph 19(3)(b) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(7) Subsections 19(4) and (5) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

Electronic report

(4) The report must be sent electronically in the form and format specified by the Minister of the Environment and must bear the electronic signature of the owner or operator or their authorized representative.

Paper report

(5) If the Minister of the Environment has not specified an electronic form and format or if it is not feasible to send the report electronically in accordance with subsection (4) because of circumstances beyond the control of the owner or operator, the report must be sent on paper, signed by the owner or operator or their authorized representative, and in the form and format specified by the Minister of the Environment, if applicable.

16 The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 19:

Notice

19.1 The owner or operator of a wastewater system must notify an inspector, fishery officer, or authority prescribed by any regulations made under the Act without delay if a test carried out on a sample of effluent indicates that

17 Subsection 23(1) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Paragraph 36(4)(b) of the Act

23 (1) For the purposes of paragraph 36(4)(b) of the Act, an owner or operator of a wastewater system may deposit or permit the deposit of effluent that contains any of the deleterious substances prescribed in section 5 of these Regulations via one or more final discharge points or overflow points in any water or place referred to in subsection 36(3) of the Act, if the deposit is made in accordance with an authorization issued under this Part.

18 Subsection 24(1) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Transitional authorization — eligibility

24 (1) The owner or operator of a wastewater system may apply to an authorization officer for a transitional authorization to deposit, via a final discharge point, effluent that contains any of the deleterious substances prescribed in section 5, if the respective averages of the substances prescribed in paragraphs 5(a) and (b), determined in accordance with subsection (1.1), exceed 25 mg/L.

Transitional authorization – average concentrations

(1.1) The owner or operator of a wastewater system must determine the averages referred to in subsection (1) by averaging, for each substance, the concentrations reported under subparagraphs 19(1)(b)(iv) and (v)

Transitional authorization issued in 2014

(1.2) An owner or operator of a wastewater system to whom a transitional authorization was issued in 2014 under section 26, as it read before the day on which this subsection comes into force, is not permitted to reapply for a transitional authorization.

Transitional authorization issued in 2014 – requirements

(1.3) Sections 24 to 26, 28 and 30, as they read before the day on which this subsection comes into force, continue to apply with respect to any authorization referred to in subsection (1.2).

19 (1) Subparagraph 25(1)(e)(i) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(2) Paragraph 25(1)(e) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of subparagraph (ii), by adding “and” at the end of subparagraph (iii) and by adding the following after subparagraph (iii):

(3) Paragraphs 25(1)(k) to (m) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(4) Paragraphs 25(1)(o) and (p) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(5) Paragraph 25(1)(r) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(6) The portion of paragraph 25(1)(t) of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(7) Subsection 25(2) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Required information — fictional consolidated wastewater system

(2) Despite subsection (1), an application for a transitional authorization made by an owner or operator of a fictional consolidated wastewater system referred to in section 4 must contain the latitude and longitude of the final discharge point considered in accordance with subsection 4(2) and a copy of the consolidation plan referred to in subsection 4(3) instead of the plan referred to in paragraph (1)(f).

20 (1) Subparagraph 26(1)(b)(i) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(2) Paragraph 26(1)(b) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of subparagraph (ii) and by adding the following after subparagraph (iii):

(3) Paragraph 26(1)(c) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(4) Paragraphs 26(2)(a) and (b) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(5) The portion of paragraph 26(2)(c) of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(6) Section 26 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after subsection (3):

Condition of issuance — exception

(4) The authorization officer must refuse to issue the transitional authorization if the final discharge point is, under the table to Schedule 2, allocated 70 or more points and, in the case of a wastewater system that has combined sewer overflow points for which points are allocated under Schedule 3, each combined sewer overflow point of the wastewater system is allocated fewer points than the number of points allocated to the final discharge point under Schedule 2.

21 Section 27 of the Regulations is repealed.

22 (1) Subparagraph 28(1)(a)(i) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(2) Subparagraph 28(1)(b)(i) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(3) Paragraph 28(1)(c) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(4) The portion of paragraph 28(1)(d) of the Regulations before subparagraph (ii) is replaced by the following:

(5) Subsection 28(2) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Authorized deposits — fictional consolidated wastewater system

(2) A holder of a transitional authorization in respect of a fictional consolidated wastewater system referred to in section 4 is also authorized, during the given calendar year, quarter or month referred to in subsection (1), to deposit effluent that contains any of the deleterious substances prescribed in section 5 via the final discharge point of each of the original wastewater systems that constitute the fictional consolidated wastewater system if the effluent deposited via the final discharge point of each of those original wastewater systems — during the previous calendar year, previous quarter or previous month — met the conditions set out in subsection (1).

23 (1) Paragraph 29(1)(b) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(2) Subsection 29(2) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Progress reports

(2) The holder of a transitional authorization must, within 90 days before the following dates, send to the authorization officer a progress report on the steps taken to implement the plan referred to in subsection 4(1) or paragraph 25(1)(f) or (s), as the case may be:

Compliance obligations – amended plan

(3) The progress report must include amendments to the plan referred to in subsection 4(1) or paragraph 25(1)(f) or (s), as the case may be, along with a schedule to implement the plan.

24 (1) Subsection 31(1) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Correction of information

31 (1) If the owner or operator of a wastewater system becomes aware that the information provided in their application for a transitional authorization contains errors or if the information provided in the transitional authorization is incorrect, they must, without delay, send a notice to the authorization officer that indicates the reason for the incorrect information and any corrections made, along with a corrected statement referred to in paragraph 25(1)(t).

(2) Section 31 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after subsection (2):

Change in ownership

(3) A new owner or operator of a wastewater system must, no later than 30 days after the day on which the ownership of the wastewater system is transferred, send a notice to the authorization officer that indicates the date on which the transfer occurred and any updates to the information referred to in paragraphs 25(1)(a) to (c), along with a corrected statement referred to in paragraph 25(1)(t) signed and dated by the new owner or operator or their authorized representative.

Amended transitional authorization

(4) On receipt of a notice referred to in subsection (3), the authorization officer must issue an amended transitional authorization with the updates to the information referred to in paragraphs 30(a) and (c).

25 Paragraph 32(1)(e) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

26 (1) The portion of section 33 of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Transitional authorization — termination

33 (1) Despite subsections 24(2) and 26(2), the authorization officer may terminate a transitional authorization at the end of a given calendar year, quarter or month determined in accordance with subsection 6(2), if the effluent deposited via the final discharge point of the wastewater system was not acutely lethal and if it met the conditions for the authorization set out in paragraphs 6(1)(a) and (b) during

(2) Section 33 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after subsection (1):

Expiry of temporary authorization — notice

(2) If the modifications to be made to a wastewater system are completed in accordance with the plan referred to in subsection 4(1) or paragraph 25(1)(f) or (s) or subsection 29(3), as the case may be, the owner or operator of the wastewater system must send a notice to the authorization officer that indicates the date on which the modifications were completed and certifies that the identification report has been updated in accordance with subsection 18(6).

27 (1) The portion of subsection 34(1) of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Requirements

34 (1) The owner or operator of a wastewater system whose effluent deposited via its final discharge point is acutely lethal because of the concentration of un-ionized ammonia in it may apply to an authorization officer for a temporary authorization to deposit effluent that contains un-ionized ammonia via the final discharge point if the concentration of un-ionized ammonia in the water, determined in accordance with subsection (3), at all points that are 100 m downstream from the point of entry where effluent is deposited in that water via the final discharge point is less than or equal to 0.016 mg/L, expressed as nitrogen (N), and if

(2) Subsection 34(4) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Determination of concentration of total ammonia in water

(4) The concentration of total ammonia in the water referred to in subsection (3) must be determined using a total ammonia test.

28 (1) Paragraph 35(f) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(2) The portion of paragraph 35(g) of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(3) Subparagraph 35(g)(ii) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

29 (1) The portion of subsection 36(1) of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

Required information

36 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the authorization officer must issue the temporary authorization to deposit effluent that contains un-ionized ammonia for a period of three years beginning on the date of issuance, if

(2) Paragraph 36(1)(c) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

30 Paragraph 37(b) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

31 (1) The portion of section 38 of the Regulations before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:

General requirements

38 The holder of a temporary authorization to deposit effluent that contains un-ionized ammonia must, at the final discharge point, during the period of authorization

(2) Paragraph 38(b) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

32 Paragraph 39(e) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

33 Paragraph 40(2)(b) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

34 (1) Subsection 43(2) of the Regulations is amended by striking out “and” at the end of paragraph (a) and by adding the following after paragraph (b):

(2) Subsection 43(3) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Period for application

(3) An application for a temporary bypass authorization must be made at least

35 The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 43:

Bypass Categories for Temporary Bypass Authorizations

Physical or biological treatment

43.1 For the purposes of sections 43.2 and 43.3, physical or biological treatment means any treatment process, other than preliminary treatment, applied to wastewater for the purpose of removing suspended solids or CBOD matter, or both, from the influent.

Bypass category determination — physical or biological treatment

43.2 (1) If the effluent deposited during the proposed bypass has undergone a physical or biological treatment, the determination of the bypass category for the purpose of obtaining a temporary bypass authorization is made in accordance with subsections (2) to (4).

Category 1 bypass

(2) The bypass is a Category 1 bypass if

Category 3 bypass

(3) The bypass is a Category 3 bypass if

Category 2 bypass

(4) The bypass is a Category 2 bypass if it does not meet the requirements set out in subsection (2) or (3).

Bypass category determination — no physical or biological treatment

43.3 (1) If the effluent deposited during the proposed bypass has not undergone a physical or biological treatment, the determination of the bypass category for the purpose of obtaining a temporary bypass authorization is made in accordance with subsections (2) to (4).

Category 1 bypass

(2) The bypass is a Category 1 bypass if

Category 3 bypass

(3) The bypass is a Category 3 bypass if

Category 2 bypass

(4) The bypass is a Category 2 bypass if it does not meet the requirements set out in subsection (2) or (3).

Precipitation event

43.4 (1) For the purposes of this section, precipitation event means an accumulation of precipitation, other than from melting snow or ice, that causes a temporary surcharge in the wastewater system because of a reduced capacity due to the construction work, the maintenance of the system or the response referred to in paragraph 43(2)(a) and results in a deposit of untreated wastewater mixed with surface runoff and stormwater.

Bypass category determination — precipitation events during period of reduced capacity

(2) If the effluent deposited during the proposed bypass is caused by one or more precipitation events that occur during a period of reduced capacity of the wastewater system, the determination of the bypass category for the purpose of obtaining a temporary bypass authorization is made in accordance with subsections (3) to (5).

Category 1 bypass

(3) The bypass is a Category 1 bypass if

Category 3 bypass

(4) The bypass is a Category 3 bypass if

Category 2 bypass

(5) The bypass is a Category 2 bypass if it does not meet the requirements set out in subsection (3) or (4).

36 (1) Section 44 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after paragraph (c):

(2) Subparagraphs 44(e)(i) and (ii) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

(3) Section 44 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after paragraph (e):

(4) Paragraph 44(h) of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(5) The portion of paragraph 44(i) of the Regulations before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:

(6) Paragraph 44(i)(ii) of the English version of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

(7) Section 44 of the Regulations is renumbered as subsection 44(1) and is amended by adding the following:

Additional information – risk level

(2) In addition to the information referred to in subsection (1), an application for a temporary bypass authorization must contain the following information:

Additional information – on demand

(3) The authorization officer may request additional information from an applicant if that information is required to assess the potential adverse effects of the bypass on fish, fish habitat or the use by man of fish.

Additional information – written notice

(4) In accordance with subsection (3), the authorization officer must provide the applicant with a written notice setting out the information to be provided and the timeline for providing it.

37 Paragraphs 45(1)(a) and (b) of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

38 The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 45:

Conditions on Temporary Bypass Authorizations

Authorized deposit

45.1 A holder of a temporary bypass authorization in respect of a wastewater system is authorized to deposit effluent if the mitigation and monitoring measures referred to in paragraphs 44(1)(h.1) and (h.2) and subparagraph 44(2)(b)(iv), as applicable, are implemented.

Compliance Obligations

General requirements

45.2 (1) An owner or operator of a wastewater system who holds a temporary bypass authorization must, during the period of authorization, comply with,

Exemption — daily volume

(2) Despite subsection (1), if, during the period of authorization, the volume or rate of flow of the influent or effluent cannot be measured in accordance with section 9, the holder of a temporary authorization may determine the daily volume of effluent by using a method of estimation in accordance with subsection 7(4).

Final report

(3) The holder of a temporary bypass authorization must, within 90 days after the last day of the period of the authorization, send to the authorization officer a final report on the temporary bypass that includes the following information, as applicable:

Examination

(4) The holder of a temporary bypass authorization must ensure that the plan referred to in paragraph (3)(f) is available for examination by the public.

39 Section 46 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Content of authorization

46 A temporary bypass authorization is to be issued for a period that is sufficient to allow for the construction work, for the maintenance of the system or for the response referred to in paragraph 43(2)(a) and the authorization must be in the form set out in Schedule 6.

40 Section 47 of the Regulations is replaced by the following:

Correction of information

47 (1) If the holder of the temporary authorization becomes aware that the information provided in their application for a temporary bypass authorization contains errors, they must, without delay, send a notice to the authorization officer that indicates the reason for the errors and provides corrections, along with a corrected statement referred to in paragraph 44(1)(i).

Corrected authorization

(2) On receipt of the notice and the corrections, the authorization officer may only issue a corrected temporary bypass authorization if

Revocation

(3) The authorization officer may revoke a temporary bypass authorization if

Representation

(4) The authorization officer must not revoke a temporary authorization unless they have provided the holder with

41 Sections 48 and 49 of the Regulations are replaced by the following:

Electronic applications

48 (1) An application for a transitional authorization or a temporary authorization must be sent electronically in the form and format specified by the Minister of the Environment and must bear the electronic signature of the owner or operator or their authorized representative.

Application on paper

(2) If the Minister of the Environment has not specified an electronic form and format or if it is not feasible to send the application electronically in accordance with subsection (1) because of circumstances beyond the control of the owner or operator, or their authorized representative, the application must be sent on paper, signed by the owner or operator, or their authorized representative, and in the form and format specified by that Minister.

Registry of authorizations

49 The Minister of the Environment must maintain a registry, for examination by the public, of all transitional authorizations, all temporary authorizations to deposit un-ionized ammonia and all temporary bypass authorizations that have been issued under this Part, and that have not been revoked.

42 Schedule 1 to the Regulations is replaced by the Schedule 1 set out in schedule 1 to these Regulations.

43 Schedule 2 to the Regulations is amended by replacing the references after the heading “Schedule 2” with the following:

(Subsections 4(2), 24(2), 25(1) and 26(2) and (4) and paragraph 43(2)(d))

44 The definition marine port waters in section 1 of Schedule 2 to the Regulations is replaced by the following:

marine port waters
means well-flushed marine waters, such as a sea port or harbour. (eaux d’un port maritime)
45 The portion of paragraph 1(a) of the table to Schedule 2 to the Regulations in column 2 is replaced by the following:
Item

Column 2

Criteria
1 (a) ≤ 500

46 Schedule 3 to the Regulations is amended by replacing the references after the heading “Schedule 3” with the following:

(Subsection 24(2), paragraph 25(1)(a) and subsections 26(2) and (4))

47 The portion of paragraph 3(b) of Schedule 3 to the Regulations in column 2 replaced by the following:
Item

Column 2

Criteria
3 (b) an area where an aquatic species that is a protected aquatic species frequents or is found, or there is a fish spawning area, within 500 m of any point of entry where effluent is deposited in the water via the overflow point

48 Schedule 4 to the Regulations is replaced by the Schedule 4 set out in Schedule 2 to these Regulations.

49 The portion of Schedule 5 to the Regulations beginning with “is (are) authorized” and ending with “expressed as nitrogen (N).” is replaced by the following:

is (are) authorized, as of [date] , to deposit effluent that contains un-ionized ammonia until [date] , from [identify final discharge point] , if the concentration of un-ionized ammonia in the water is less than or equal to 0.016 mg/L, expressed as nitrogen (N), at all points that are 100 m downstream from the point of entry where effluent is deposited in that water via the final discharge point.

50 The portion of Schedule 6 to the Regulations beginning with “is (are) authorized” and ending with “[identify deposit point] .” is replaced by the following:

is (are) authorized, as of [date] , for [number of hours] , until [date] , to deposit effluent [level of treatment] and a volume of [volume in m3] m3 from [identify one or more discharge points] into [name, if any, of the water or place where deposit(s) occur and, in the case of water, the name, if any, of the body of water that includes the water ] .

IMPORTANT: Please refer to sections 45.1 and 45.2 of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations for the conditions and compliance obligations for this authorization. Please also note that this authorization may be revoked under subsection 47(3) of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations.

Coming into Force

51 These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.

SCHEDULE 1

(section 42)

SCHEDULE 1

(Section 1)

Authorization Officers
Item

Column 1

Province

Column 2

Owner

Column 3

Position
1 Ontario His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Ontario or another Ontario body or municipality or another local authority in Ontario
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Ontario in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Ontario related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Ontario in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Ontario related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
2 Quebec His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Quebec or another Quebec body or municipality or another local authority in Quebec
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Quebec in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Quebec related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Quebec in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Quebec related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
3 Nova Scotia His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Nova Scotia or another Nova Scotia body or municipality or another local authority in Nova Scotia
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Nova Scotia in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Nova Scotia related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Nova Scotia in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Nova Scotia related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
4 New Brunswick His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of New Brunswick or another New Brunswick body or municipality or another local authority in New Brunswick
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for New Brunswick in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and New Brunswick related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for New Brunswick in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and New Brunswick related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
5 Manitoba His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Manitoba or another Manitoba body or municipality or another local authority in Manitoba
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Manitoba in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Manitoba related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Manitoba in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Manitoba related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
6 British Columbia His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of British Columbia or another British Columbia body or municipality or another local authority in British Columbia
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for British Columbia in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and British Columbia related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for British Columbia in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and British Columbia related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
7 Prince Edward Island His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Prince Edward Island or another Prince Edward Island body or municipality or another local authority in Prince Edward Island
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Prince Edward Island in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Prince Edward Island in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Prince Edward Island related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
8 Saskatchewan His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Saskatchewan or another Saskatchewan body or municipality or another local authority in Saskatchewan
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Saskatchewan in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Saskatchewan related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Saskatchewan in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Saskatchewan related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
9 Alberta His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Alberta or another Alberta body or municipality or another local authority in Alberta
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Alberta in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Alberta related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Alberta in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Alberta related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
10 Newfoundland and Labrador His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
His Majesty in right of Newfoundland and Labrador or another Newfoundland and Labrador body or municipality or another local authority in Newfoundland and Labrador
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Newfoundland and Labrador in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Newfoundland and Labrador in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
11 Yukon His Majesty in right of Canada, another federal body or an Indigenous governing body referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(D) of these Regulations Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Government of Yukon or another Yukon body or municipality or another local authority in Yukon
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Yukon in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Yukon related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)
Entity referred to in clause 18(1)(d)(iii)(E) of these Regulations
  • (a) The holder of a position that is designated as an authorization officer for the purpose of these Regulations for Yukon in a written agreement between the governments of Canada and Yukon related to the administration of these Regulations that is published in the Canada Gazette; and
  • (b) in the absence of such an agreement, Manager, Wastewater Section, Department of the Environment (Canada)

SCHEDULE 2

(section 48)

SCHEDULE 4

(Section 30)

Transitional Authorization

[Name and address of owner or operator]

in respect of [name and address of wastewater system]

(a) is (are) authorized as of [the date of issuance referred to in subsection 26(2) of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations] to deposit effluent that contains the deleterious substances set out below until [expiry date]* from [identify final discharge point and, in the case of a fictional consolidated wastewater system referred to in section 4 of those Regulations, identify the final discharge point for each of the original wastewater systems] .

Deleterious Substance Average Concentration over the Calendar Year, Quarter or Month Maximum Concentration over the Calendar Year, Quarter or Month
CBOD matter mg/L of carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand not applicable
suspended solids (SS) mg/L not applicable
un-ionized ammonia (NH3) not applicable mg/L, as nitrogen (N) at 15°C ± 1°C

(b) is (are) authorized as of [the date of issuance referred to in subsection 26(2) of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations] to deposit effluent whose average concentration of total residual chlorine does not exceed 0.02 mg/L until [expiry date]* from [identify final discharge point and, in the case of a fictional consolidated wastewater system, identify the final discharge point for each of the original wastewater systems] if chlorine, or one of its compounds, was used in the treatment of wastewater in the wastewater system.

IMPORTANT: Please refer to sections 28 and 29 of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations for the conditions and compliance requirements related to the authorization. Please also take note that this authorization may be revoked under section 32 of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations.

* This authorization may expire under subsection 33(1) of the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations on a date earlier than the date indicated above as the expiry date.

Authorization Officer:

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)

Executive summary

Issues: The Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations (the Regulations) aim to reduce impacts of pollution from wastewater by setting national minimum effluent quality standards. While most wastewater systems are able to meet the standards, there is still undertreated effluent released to the environment from systems without adequate treatment infrastructure, and temporary releases of undertreated effluent due to repairs, maintenance or upgrade work at treatment plants. The Regulations manage these undertreated wastewater releases through transitional and temporary authorization provisions. Over several years of implementing the Regulations, and based on feedback received, the Department of the Environment (the Department) has identified gaps in these provisions.

Description: The Regulations Amending the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations (the Amendments) will allow eligible owners and operators of wastewater systems (regulatees) another opportunity to receive an extension (transitional authorization) to upgrade their system. The Amendments will also expand temporary bypass authorizations to apply to all planned releases in the wastewater infrastructure, at treatment plants and within the collection system, and apply a risk-based approach to the planning, evaluating and authorization of these releases. The Amendments will also address administrative and operational challenges.

Rationale: The Amendments are intended to provide clarity and reduce the burden for regulatees, improve environmental oversight, and increase transparency for the public. These Amendments were developed and finalized using feedback from extensive consultation with key stakeholders, provinces, municipalities, and Indigenous groups and communities. Over a 20-year period, the total benefits of the Amendments, including cost savings for regulatees, are estimated at $61.2 million. Benefits include a streamlined application process for low-risk temporary bypasses, reduced enforcement-related costs, less frequent equipment recalibration, and reduced monitoring and reporting requirements. Total costs are estimated at $13.2 million. They include submitting and reviewing authorization applications and progress reports, familiarization with the Amendments, and compliance promotion. The net benefit is therefore estimated to be $48.0 million.

Issues

The Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II on July 18, 2012, with national effluent quality standards that came into effect in 2015. The Regulations apply to approximately 1 600 owners and operators of wastewater systems that collect and treat sewage primarily from household activities. The regulated community is primarily made up of municipalities and Indigenous communities; however, some wastewater systems are owned or operated by federal departments, provincial governments, or other entities. The Department has identified three implementation issues that are impacting the ability of regulatees to comply with the Regulations. Amendments to the Regulations are needed to address these issues.

Issue 1 — Transitional authorizations: Regulatees that were not able to meet the effluent quality standards when they came into effect in 2015 were given an opportunity to apply for an extension (known as a “transitional authorization”) to upgrade their wastewater treatment system. Over a hundred regulatees did not apply for a transitional authorization by June 30, 2014, the deadline set out in the Regulations. They have since been in long-term non-compliance with the Regulations. This results in them having reduced access to funding and no clear timelines in which to upgrade their systems to meet the required standards.

Issue 2 — Temporary bypass authorizations: Regulatees need to maintain and repair their wastewater systems and may need to request a temporary bypass authorization under the Regulations. This allows regulatees to temporarily release undertreated wastewater at the end of their treatment plant (final discharge point) to complete the required upgrades. However, releases from any other point in the wastewater infrastructure (e.g. the sewer system) are not authorized under the Regulations, even though maintenance activities in these areas are needed from time to time. This limits the ability of the Department to be proactive and manage these releases to protect the environment and ensure transparency with the public. It also creates an inconsistency where some types of maintenance are covered under the Regulations while others are not.

Issue 3 — Administrative inefficiencies: Regulatees and other stakeholders have identified administrative and operational requirements that are either not clear or that cause unnecessary administrative burden. These administrative inefficiencies require significant effort with minimal benefit for regulatees, the environment or the public.

Background

The Regulations, which are established under the Fisheries Act, aim to reduce impacts of pollution from wastewater systems into receiving waters (e.g. rivers, lakes, oceans) by setting national minimum effluent quality standards (standards) achievable through secondary-level wastewater treatment. Secondary-level wastewater treatment includes physical and biological treatment and removes up to 95% of pollutants typically found in wastewater. The standards include limits on key substances that are indicators of overall effluent quality and treatment effectiveness: carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand; suspended solids; total residual chlorine and un-ionized ammonia. In addition, the standards require that wastewater effluent be not acutely lethal to fish based on standard testing methodologies.footnote 2

The Regulations apply to wastewater systems that collect, or are designed to collect, 100 cubic metres (m3) or more of wastewater per day (which typically corresponds to a population of approximately 200 to 250 people) and discharge to waters frequented by fish or to any place, under any condition, where wastewater may enter water frequented by fish. Due to extreme climatic conditions, the Regulations do not apply to any wastewater system in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, or north of the 54th parallel in the provinces of Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador.

While most wastewater systems subject to the Regulations meet the standards, approximately 17% of total wastewater volumes are undertreated and released to the environment from wastewater systems that provide little or no treatment. The Regulations manage these wastewater systems that regularly release undertreated wastewater through transitional authorizations. The Regulations also have temporary bypass authorizations to manage temporary releases of undertreated wastewater due to repairs, maintenance or upgrades at treatment plants. The Department has identified gaps based on several years of implementation of these authorizations under the Regulations and based on the feedback received from regulatees, stakeholders, Indigenous communities, governments and organizations.

While most wastewater systems were capable of achieving the standards when they came into effect, approximately 13% of regulatees did not have infrastructure in place to be able to meet the standards. Understanding that upgrading or constructing new wastewater treatment systems requires a lot of time to plan and finance, the Regulations allowed regulatees to apply for a transitional authorization. The deadline to apply for a transitional authorization was June 30, 2014. Rather than being required to meet the effluent quality standards when they came into force on January 1, 2015, a transitional authorization gave the regulatee time to implement necessary upgrades. Depending on the level of risk to the environment (determined using the volume of effluent released, concentration of pollutants and the receiving environment), a transitional authorization gave a regulatee until the end of 2020 (for a high-risk system), 2030 (for a medium-risk system) or 2040 (for a low-risk system) to comply with the standards. A description of the criteria and the system of points used to determine the risk level to the environment is presented in Schedule 2 of the Regulations.

The Department issued 65 transitional authorizations in 2014. However, more than 100 eligible regulatees did not apply for a transitional authorization. There is no authority in the Regulations to issue transitional authorizations after June 30, 2014. These wastewater systems are mostly located in small, rural communities that represent just over 1% of total wastewater volume and 2.4% of total undertreated wastewater volume in Canada. The majority (84%) of these wastewater systems are located in Newfoundland and Labrador, but there are some in every other province. Most of these regulatees have told the Department that they were either unclear whether the Regulations applied to their system or did not understand the requirements of the transitional authorization application process, including the 2014 deadline. In addition, many regulatees were not monitoring their effluent in 2013–2014, which was required to apply for a transitional authorization. When the Regulations came into force, these issues were not anticipated, and now that the 2014 application deadline has passed, there is no way for a transitional authorization to be issued, which is why the Department initiated work to amend the Regulations in 2019.

The Regulations also allow undertreated effluent to be temporarily released at the treatment plant final discharge point when at least one of the normal treatment processes applied to the effluent needs to be bypassed to carry out repairs, maintenance and/or upgrades. The Regulations do not allow these releases elsewhere within the wastewater infrastructure (e.g. sewer system, pumping stations, overflow points), even if they are a result of required maintenance activities that ensure wastewater facilities are operating as effectively as possible. These maintenance activities are also important to prevent infrastructure failures leading to larger, uncontrolled releases of undertreated effluent. While these releases are not authorized under the Regulations, it is not always possible to avoid them given that wastewater infrastructure cannot be turned off without causing sewer backups, often in residential areas. Currently, these releases are subject to subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act, which prohibits the deposit of deleterious substances into water frequented by fish or any place that could reach such waters. The Fisheries Act also includes requirements for notification, corrective action and reporting. The lack of requirements in the Regulations to manage all types of maintenance releases has limited the ability to proactively manage them, resulting in a lack of oversight, transparency and consistency in the types of maintenance activities that are covered under the Regulations.

Objective

The objective of the Amendments is to strengthen environmental protection and to improve transparency and regulatory oversight in the management of wastewater effluent. The Amendments aim to support regulatees in meeting the regulatory objectives and address administrative and operational challenges that have been identified.

Description

Transitional authorizations

The Amendments related to transitional authorizations will give regulatees with medium- and low-risk systems another opportunity to apply for a transitional authorization to the end of 2030 or 2040, respectively. There will no longer be an end date for submitting applications for a transitional authorization, which will enable regulatees to apply at any time in the future. The transitional authorization application process will continue to have the same eligibility criteria and point-based approach to determine the level of risk.

To be eligible for a transitional authorization, regulatees must be able to demonstrate that they are unable to meet the standards of the Regulations due to their wastewater system design. The Amendments require regulatees to use the earliest effluent quality data that has been reported to the Department in their application. In addition, regulatees will be required to demonstrate that their system is still not meeting the standards by submitting the most recent monitoring data.

The Amendments will require regulatees to submit un-ionized ammonia data as part of their transitional authorization application. The Amendments provide flexibility in demonstrating levels of un-ionized ammonia in the effluent by requiring between one and four samples, rather than a full year of data, based on the type of wastewater system.footnote 3 Regulatees will not be eligible to receive a new transitional authorization if they already have one, or if they operate a high-risk wastewater system. Wastewater systems that do not meet the effluent standards and do not have a transitional authorization are out of compliance with the Regulations and the Fisheries Act.

The Amendments will reduce monitoring frequency for wastewater systems with no treatment from monthly to quarterly if they have a transitional authorization. In order to better track progress of wastewater upgrades, the Amendments will increase the frequency of progress reports, from every five years to every two years.

Temporary bypass authorizations

The Amendments create new requirements for temporary bypass authorizations for all planned maintenance, construction and upgrade activities occurring within wastewater infrastructure based on the level of risk to the environment. Bypasses fall into one of three categories, based on criteria such as the level of treatment, approximate durations, the estimated volume to be released and whether the release occurs in a receiving environment that is in or near a shellfish harvesting area or critical habitat for protected aquatic species or that regularly receives wastewater. Each category has specific application requirements, timelines, and compliance obligations based on the level of risk to the environment. A detailed description of the criteria and thresholds for each temporary bypass category is presented in Schedule 7 of the Regulations.

Category 1 is a streamlined process for releases with less risk to the environment and requires applications to be submitted at least 21 days in advance of the bypass. Regulatees will need to demonstrate that the bypass minimizes harm to the environment, that the public has been notified and that measures have been taken to reduce the impacts of the release. They will also have to complete a follow-up report describing the results of the bypass (e.g. the actual length of the bypass and the final volumes released). Category 2 is a standard process and requires applications to be submitted at least 45 days in advance. Applications for Category 2 require additional information (compared to category 1) including a detailed description of measures taken to reduce impacts. Category 3 is an enhanced process for releases that have higher risk to the environment, requiring applications to be submitted at least 90 days in advance of the bypass. In addition to the information provided in Category 1 and Category 2, more detailed information will be required. This includes information on the other options that were considered to prevent the release of wastewater and a study showing potential environmental impacts. In Category 3, regulatees will also be required to provide a plan for sampling and monitoring. Requiring the application 90 days before the bypass for Category 3 allows for the completion of an appropriate evaluation of environmental impacts and allows the regulatee to notify and engage potentially impacted communities as necessary.

Administrative/operational improvements

The Amendments include provisions to simplify regulatory requirements and provide better clarity and flexibility for regulatees. These administrative and operational improvements include allowing sampling in lagoons and sampling before effluent is discharged, permitting the estimation of effluent volumes instead of using monitoring equipment, reducing calibration frequency of equipment, and adding notification requirements for unauthorized releases.

Regulatory development

Consultation

Pre-Canada Gazette consultation

The Department proceeded with a comprehensive consultation process from 2020 to 2022. A notice of intent was published in the Canada Gazette in June 2020, which was followed by preliminary engagement activities until mid-2021. This phase involved key stakeholders and Indigenous groups and focused on gathering insights regarding transitional and temporary bypass authorizations.

Building on the feedback and insights gathered, the Department published a discussion document in December 2021, outlining the regulatory proposal. The initial response to the proposal was largely positive. Much of the feedback received was regarding temporary bypass authorizations and highlighted the need to consider a more streamlined approach to assess risk and to consider impacts on the receiving environment. A detailed summary of the comments received can be found in the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement, published with the proposed Amendments in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on May 27, 2023.

Consultation following prepublication in the Canada Gazette, Part I

Following publication of the proposed Amendments in the Canada Gazette, Part I, the Department proactively engaged stakeholders to ensure a comprehensive consultation process. Regulatees, national and regional Indigenous organizations, provincial authorities, key associations, environmental non-governmental organizations and industry professionals were all notified and invited to provide feedback. The Department organized five public information sessions, sessions for federal departments and the provinces, and seven targeted sessions, including with the Canadian Water and Wastewater Association, Atlantic Canada Water and Wastewater Association and Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Department received more than 100 written comments from six municipalities, three Indigenous organizations and communities, two federal departments, one association, four provinces, one environmental non-governmental organization, one laboratory and ten individuals.footnote 4 Overall, the feedback received was positive with a general support for the Amendments. Most of the feedback focused on the temporary bypass authorization provisions, primarily clarifications and concerns about notification procedures and the impact on receiving environments.

The Department evaluated every comment received, making amendments to the regulatory text as appropriate. The following subsections summarize the feedback from stakeholders regarding transitional authorizations, temporary bypass authorizations and administrative provisions. These subsections also outline how these comments were considered by the Department in finalizing the Regulations.

Transitional authorizations

There was overall support for reopening the transitional authorization provisions. Comments received mainly focused on the high costs of infrastructure upgrades to meet the standards of the Regulations and the need for the federal government to provide financial support. These concerns have been shared with the Office of Infrastructure of Canada (Infrastructure Canada) for consideration of future federal infrastructure programming.

There was also broad support for reducing sampling and monitoring burden for small communities granted transitional authorization to allow communities to use these resources towards upgrades.

Temporary bypass authorizations

Most comments received on temporary bypass authorizations pertained to the application process. Stakeholders called for additional oversight to ensure adequate notification will occur prior to release, particularly for Indigenous peoples on and off reserve, and recommended that guidance be made available outlining the Department’s expectations around notification.

The Amendments provide sufficient regulatory oversight to ensure proper notification. The Department will evaluate each application for completeness and any application that does not demonstrate adequate notification will be considered incomplete and the bypass will not be authorized.

A release into a critical habitat for protected aquatic species will trigger a longer review application process to allow the Department ample time to conduct a scientific assessment of any potential impact on fish and fish habitat. The definition of protected aquatic species in the proposed Regulations included endangered and threatened species under the laws of a province. Regulatees commented that there needs to be a clear temporary bypass application process with readily available information. Based on these comments and further analysis, the Department determined the information on critical habitat of provincially protected species is often not readily available. In addition, there is significant overlap in the lists of provincial and federal aquatic species at risk. In response, the Department has removed the reference to the laws of a province in the final Regulations as part of the receiving environment triggers. Protected aquatic species under the laws of a province will still be taken into consideration when reviewing temporary bypass applications to determine impacts on the receiving environment.

Regulatees also questioned the need to develop and maintain long-term plans in case of recurrent applications for large, untreated releases. The need for transparency and accountability when granting authorizations for higher-risk releases was one of the drivers to amend the Regulations. Requiring regulatees to explain how they will limit these types of releases in the long term will help achieve this goal. The Department received additional comments from provinces and regulatees on the need for greater harmonization with provincial regimes to reduce financial and administrative burden. It was also noted that there should be consequences if a temporary bypass does not meet the requirements of the authorization granted by the Department. In response, the Department will improve notifications, including to provincial counterparts, through a public registry. A revocation clause has been added to the final Regulations. Should a regulatee fail to meet their compliance obligations or the conditions set under their temporary bypass authorization, either before or during the bypass, the authorization officer could revoke their authorization.

The Department also commits to publishing detailed guidance which outline expectations for temporary bypass authorizations including notification requirements and criteria, as well as how to prepare a long-term plan.

Administrative provisions

Changes to administrative provisions garnered widespread support, particularly measures designed to reduce administrative burden and improve operations while maintaining environmental and regulatory oversight. Most comments received were technical in nature. There were requests to further clarify definitions and questions on provisions related to total residual chlorine and reporting suspended solid results during algae and invertebrate blooms. The Department has further clarified definitions and included flexibility for reporting suspended solids averages in response to comments received.

The Department also received strong concerns from the public about the welfare of fish used in acute lethality testing. The commenters requested the Department shift to animal-free test methods. While the Department assessed alternative testing methods prior to the prepublication of the Regulations in the Canada Gazette, Part I, there is currently no alternative available that allows for accurate acute lethality testing in wastewater. Should other accurate test methods become available, the Department would consider them in future amendments.

Modern treaty obligations and Indigenous engagement and consultation

The Department conducted an assessment of modern treaty implications pursuant to the Cabinet Directive on the Federal Approach to Modern Treaty Implementation. The assessment did not identify any known modern treaty implications or obligations resulting from the Amendments.

As of 2022, there were more than 140 wastewater systems located in Indigenous communities subject to the Regulations.

Pre-Canada Gazette consultation

The Department informed Indigenous organizations and governments of its intention to amend the Regulations in 2020. A number of early engagement activities were arranged, including with the Assembly of First Nations, Tribal Councils, technical associations and specific Indigenous communities impacted by the 2015 Montréal bypass event where 4.8 million cubic metres of untreated wastewater were released from the wastewater collection system.

The Department used feedback garnered during these discussions to prepare and publish a discussion document in December 2021. Indigenous organizations and communities were invited to participate in consultation sessions and provide feedback. The Department was invited to present to Indigenous-led forums. Overall, the general reception was positive with no significant concerns raised about the proposed Amendments. Comments received focused largely on the temporary bypass provisions, and the importance of Indigenous engagement prior to releases, and increased monitoring and environmental oversight to reduce the frequency and volume of untreated releases in the long term. A detailed summary of the comments received can be found in the Regulatory Impact Assessment Statement, published with the proposed Amendments in the Canada Gazette, Part I, on May 27, 2023.

Consultation following prepublication in the Canada Gazette, Part I

The Department received three written comments from Indigenous organizations and communities on the proposed Amendments. One of the comments sought clarity on Indigenous and public notification and engagement procedures preceding a temporary bypass authorization application. Another comment raised concerns that these requirements should not replace the Department’s consultation obligations and requested assurance of appropriate notifications to Indigenous peoples both on and off reserves. The Department clarified that the notification provisions for temporary bypass authorizations do not negate its Duty to Consult. The Department remains committed to engaging Indigenous peoples and will evaluate each application to ensure that Indigenous notifications have been conducted as part of a temporary bypass application. Applications lacking proper notifications will be deemed incomplete, and an authorization would not be issued. Detailed guidance will accompany the Regulations, outlining the Department’s expectations regarding the notification of Indigenous peoples, the public, and nearby communities. It will include criteria for determining notification recipients and methods.

Indigenous organizations requested that the Department consider additional sensitive receiving environments as triggers for a Category 3 temporary bypass application. Recommendations included marine protected areas, ecologically significant areas, Ramsar wetlands,footnote 5 National Parks, National Conservation Areas, and Indigenous culturally significant and harvesting areas. The Department analyzed the additional sensitive receiving environments suggested for potential consideration as triggers. The analysis determined that there is significant overlap with the existing proposed triggers (e.g. National Parks, National Conservation Areas) while others are in areas with no wastewater infrastructure (e.g. marine protected areas). Other recommended sensitive receiving environments have not yet been defined or designated (e.g. ecologically significant areas) and information is not readily available for regulatees or the Department.

The proposed Amendments included two receiving environment triggers as they directly relate to the need for increased time to review a temporary bypass application and were not chosen to represent all sensitive receiving environments. Critical habitat for protected aquatic species at risk was selected because the Department needs additional time to analyze any potential impacts to fish and fish habitat. Shellfish harvesting areas were selected to provide adequate time to assess the need for possible harvesting area closures.

The Amendments have retained the initially proposed triggers for Category 3 applications, however, the potential impacts of each proposed temporary bypass authorization will be assessed based on the sensitivity of the receiving environment. The Department will take into consideration the recommendations received and include information on sensitive receiving environments, such as those recommended by Indigenous organizations, as part of detailed guidance for regulatees.

Instrument choice

The Department regulates effluent released from wastewater systems under the Regulations, which are established under the Fisheries Act. It is important to note that under the Fisheries Act, regulatory instruments are necessary for managing the deposits of deleterious substances.footnote 6 Consequently, the examination of options was limited to two choices: (1) maintaining the regulatory regime (status quo), or (2) revising the regulatory regime to address the issues raised in relation to transitional and temporary bypass authorizations.

To manage the issue of communities failing to apply for transitional authorizations prior to June 2014, the status quo approach was rejected. This was because governments (particularly Newfoundland and Labrador), municipalities and associations flagged the significant regional issues of a lack of wastewater infrastructure and the need for predictable timelines for communities to come into compliance and complete infrastructure upgrades. The Department determined that managing this issue through the Amendments was a more efficient use of Departmental and community resources compared to individual enforcement activities. The Amendments will provide clear, consistent, and transparent timelines to both regulatees and the public on the management of wastewater upgrades across the country.

The Amendments will ensure the implementation of the Canada-wide Strategy for the Management of Municipal Wastewater Effluent and the agreed upon timelines for upgrades to different risk levels of communities. The Amendments will provide greater administrative flexibility to achieve the policy objective with the least amount of costs to public resources.

Since the Regulations came into force in 2012, the Department has increased the rigour in internal assessment processes for evaluating applications for temporary bypass authorizations, including notifications to nearby communities for higher-risk releases. This was done in response to concerns raised with the Department following the Montréal release in November 2015. For the releases that were not covered under the Regulations, improved communication channels throughout the Department were implemented to support more transparency. While this was a marked improvement in managing releases due to maintenance and construction activities, the Department concluded it was necessary to amend the Regulations to further improve the level of oversight and transparency.

The Amendments build on existing regulatory requirements for transitional and temporary bypass authorizations, while incorporating best practices implemented through policy over the last few years.

Regulatory analysis

Benefits and costs

Analytical framework

The benefits and costs associated with the Amendments were assessed in accordance with the Treasury Board Secretariat’s Canadian Cost-Benefit Analysis Guide, which includes identifying, quantifying and, where possible, monetizing the impacts associated with the policy. The incremental impacts (costs and benefits) of the Amendments were determined by comparing the baseline scenario (without the Amendments) with the regulatory scenario (with the Amendments implemented). Incremental costs were quantified and monetized.footnote 7 Incremental benefits were quantified and monetized wherever possible; otherwise, they were described qualitatively. The cost benefit analysis was updated from prepublication in the Canada Gazette, Part I, based on changing the price year from 2020 to 2022.

In the baseline scenario, regulatees (owners or operators of wastewater systems) are compliant with the current Regulations (i.e. regulatees are meeting the effluent quality standards, monitoring, reporting and record-keeping provisions), with the exception of regulatees with wastewater systems eligible for a transitional authorization that did not apply for one. Regulatees that did not apply for a transitional authorization remain in non-compliance with the effluent quality standards of the Regulations; however, they are meeting the other requirements (monitoring, reporting and record keeping). As these regulatees cannot meet the standards in the short term, they are out of compliance with the Regulations and the Fisheries Act.

The regulatory scenario, which includes the Amendments, assumes that all regulatees will be compliant with the Regulations once the Amendments come into force. It is also expected that all eligible regulatees will have applied and been granted a transitional authorization in the first year of coming into force, even though there is no longer an end date for submitting an application and that regulatees will apply for temporary bypasses every year.

The analytical timeframe is 20 years, spanning from the registration and coming into force of the Amendments in 2024 to 2043. This analytical timeframe ensures that both the 2030 and 2040 timelines related to transitional authorizations are encompassed within the analysis. Unless otherwise indicated, all values are presented in 2022 Canadian dollars, discounted at 3% to the year 2024.

Costs

A summary of all incremental costs relating to the Amendments are presented in the following table. Cost estimates were made based on available information and the Department’s expertise.

Table 1: Monetized costs (in thousands)
Impacted stakeholder Description of cost 2024 2025–2042 2043 Total Annualized value
Department Transitional authorizations $46 $24 $0 $70 $5
Temporary bypass authorizations $19 $258 $12 $289 $19
Administrative/operational changes $291 $133 $6 $430 $29
Regulatees Transitional authorizations $2,696 $165 $1 $2,862 $192
Temporary bypass authorizations $309 $4,770 $225 $5,305 $357
Administrative/operational changes $618 $3,636 $5 $4,260 $286
All stakeholders Total costs $3,979 $8,986 $249 $13,216 $888

NOTE: Totals may not add up due to rounding.

Transitional authorizations

The process to apply for a transitional authorization will result in incremental costs. However, the benefits are expected to be greater due to the reduced monitoring costs for some transitional authorization holders. Costs are estimated based on the current transitional authorization application process as well as the inclusion of more frequent progress reports to the Department. For example, the average cost associated with an application is estimated at $22,100 (to develop a plan for upgrading the wastewater system). For costing purposes, it is assumed that all eligible regulatees will apply for a transitional authorization as soon as they become eligible. It is expected that 113 regulatees will be eligible in the first year and could increase to 115 by the end of the analytical period. Department costs (approximately $70,000) are representative of compliance promotion activities, reviewing all applications and reviewing progress reports. The costs for the transitional authorization provisions are estimated at $2.9 million over the 20-year period, of which the majority ($2.7 million) is the cost to regulatees to apply for a transitional authorization.

Temporary bypass authorizations

It is expected that the Amendments will result in an increase of the number of applications for temporary bypass authorizations as more types of maintenance and construction activities will become eligible. The current Regulations (the baseline scenario) permit temporary bypass authorizations only for bypasses at the final discharge point. The Amendments will include provisions that allow for bypasses at overflow points (i.e. other than at the final discharge point) and create a three-tiered approach. It is estimated that currently, regulatees require 54 staff hours, at an average cost of $2,400,footnote 8 to complete a temporary bypass authorization application. This amount of time and cost is considered the baseline scenario, corresponding with a Category 2 bypass at the final discharge point under the Amendments.

Under the Amendments, most temporary bypass authorizations are anticipated to fall into the streamlined, or standard application process categories (Category 1 and Category 2, respectively), which are generally expected to have similar or lower costs than the baseline scenario. Those that fall into the enhanced process (Category 3) will have greater costs due to the more rigorous process. The average cost associated with a standard (Category 2) temporary bypass authorization at an overflow point is estimated at $7,900, which includes the $2,400 cost for 54 staff hours (since bypasses at overflow points are not permitted under the current Regulations, they are therefore incremental) and $5,500 to complete a more detailed follow-up report (which is required for any untreated releases). It is expected that the number of applications could increase from 20 during the first year to 26 by the end of the analytical period.footnote 9

For all Category 3 applications, it is assumed that regulatees will hire a consultant to gather the information required for these more complex releases and that they include the costs of mitigation measures as well as the development and implementation of a monitoring plan (at a total cost of $44,100). The average cost associated with a Category 3 application at the final discharge point is estimated at $44,600 ($44,100 for hiring a consultant and 12 additional staff hours due to the more rigorous application process). The average cost associated with a category 3 application at an overflow point is estimated at $47,100 ($44,100 for hiring a consultant and 66 staff hours: 12 staff hours for the more rigorous application process and the base 54 staff hours to complete a baseline temporary bypass authorization application, since bypasses at overflow points are not permitted in the baseline scenario).

The majority of costs associated with the temporary bypass authorizations under Amendments are associated with an increased number of temporary bypass applications, since the Amendments will encompass bypasses throughout the wastewater system and not only those at the final discharge point. As the work associated with these bypasses is critical to maintaining wastewater infrastructure, these releases are already occurring and are subject to the pollution prevention provisions under the Fisheries Act. Department-related costs (which total approximately $289,000) include compliance promotion of the new scheme as well as reviewing and following up on applications. The costs for the temporary bypass authorization requirements are estimated at $5.6 million over the 20-year period, of which the majority ($4.3 million) is for temporary bypass authorization applications at overflow points.

Administrative/operational changes

While the administrative/operational amendments will result in some incremental costs, they are expected to result in greater cost savings for regulatees and the Department. Costs for regulatees are based on the understanding that all regulatees will need to familiarize themselves with the amended provisions and that some regulatees will need to fill out new sections, however small they may be, in the reports that they submit through the online reporting system. For example, it was assumed that each of the regulatees will require four hours of staff time (estimated to be $178) to become familiar with the Amendments. For the Department, the costs total approximately $430,000 and are associated with compliance promotion activities of the Amendments, collecting and compiling additional required data, and potential enforcement activities needed for regulatees to have greater clarity on how and when to report unauthorized releases. The costs for the administrative/operational changes are estimated at $4.7 million over the 20-year period, of which the majority ($3.7 million) is for small wastewater systems to estimate their daily volumes using generally accepted practices instead of having to use monitoring equipment.

Overall, the Amendments are estimated to result in costs totalling $13.2 million.

Benefits

The Amendments will generate benefits by reducing unnecessary burden for regulatees, increasing environmental oversight on wastewater releases, improving regulatory clarity, and enhancing public transparency. The benefits that can be monetized are presented in Table 2. These benefits arise from reductions in costs (cost savings) to both regulatees and the Department. The greatest benefit identified is the cost savings that will arise from the administrative/operational changes for regulatees — specifically, calibrating monitoring equipment as per the manufacturer’s recommendations (assumed to be once every four years),footnote 10 rather than every year as per the current Regulations.

Table 2: Monetized benefits (in thousands)
Impacted stakeholder Description of benefit 2024 2025–2042 2043 Total Annualized value
Department Transitional authorizations $433 $4,772 $0 $5,205 $350
Temporary bypass authorizations $1 $13 $1 $15 $1
Regulatees Transitional authorizations $3,046 $3,910 $1 $6,958 $468
Temporary bypass authorizations $4 $61 $3 $67 $5
Administrative/operational changes $5,154 $41,894 $1,950 $48,998 $3,293
All stakeholders Total benefits $8,638 $50,650 $1,955 $61,243 $4,116

NOTE: Totals may not add up due to rounding.

Transitional authorizations

Specifically, the Amendments to allow new applications for transitional authorizations will provide clear and predictable timeline requirements for regulatees to upgrade their wastewater systems. This adds clarity for the public on when facilities are expected to meet the effluent quality standards. This will also help small rural communities that receive a transitional authorization to prioritize resources for wastewater system upgrades, while continuing to provide the Department with enough information to understand current effluent quality and progress towards meeting the national standards. This approach will allow the use of the earliest available monitoring data in the application submitted to the Department. This will allow regulatees that have been meeting monitoring and reporting requirements in the Regulations to apply for a transitional authorization following the coming into force of the Amendments. Requiring progress reports to be submitted more frequently will result in additional costs but it will also increase accountability and transparency on overall status and timing of upgrades. For eligible regulatees, cost savings are based on reduced monitoring and reporting requirements. The Amendments include a reduction in monitoring and reporting frequency for regulatees with a small and continuously discharging wastewater system, and which are granted a transitional authorization. For low-risk regulatees, specifically those eligible for a transitional authorization until 2040, 73 are anticipated to be affected in the initial year, increasing to 74 by the end of the analytical period. The expected cost savings are estimated at $3.8 million over a 20-year period, or $51,500 per regulatee. For the Department, there will be reduced costs (amounting to an estimated $5.2 million in monetized benefits) associated with enforcement actions since all regulatees will be able to achieve compliance with the Amendments. The monetized benefits from the transitional authorization provisions are estimated to be $12.1 million over the 20-year period, of which the majority ($7.9 million) is cost savings from reduced enforcement actions.

Temporary bypass authorizations

The Amendments to temporary bypass authorizations recognize the essential need for wastewater infrastructure to remain operational to protect public health and prevent sewer backups into people’s homes while allowing critical maintenance work to occur throughout the wastewater infrastructure. The expansion of temporary bypass authorizations will include all planned work that could result in undertreated wastewater releases. The Amendments will allow for these releases to be authorized and reported accordingly and will include a new risk-based approach for assessing applications, which will increase the level of environmental protection for higher-risk releases. It will also improve transparency, accountability and oversight for all planned releases through measures such as notification, requiring plans to be made to reduce releases in the future, and monitoring impacts of the release in the environment. The increased public transparency will likewise help to reduce human health risks associated with undertreated wastewater releases since potentially impacted stakeholders will be notified ahead of a release and can take precautions to ensure their safety if using impacted waters. Cost savings are realized for both regulatees and the Department associated with streamlined (category 1) bypass authorizations at the final discharge point. For example, it is estimated that a streamlined application will require 30 hours less of labour (amounting to approximately $1,300 in cost savings) than would an application in the baseline scenario, with three to four streamlined applications expected each year. The monetized benefits from the temporary bypass authorization requirements are estimated at $82,000 over the 20-year period, of which the majority ($67,000) is cost savings for the regulatees.

Administrative/operational changes

The administrative/operational changes will provide clarity with existing requirements and industry standards and provide better regulatory alignment with existing provincial requirements. Benefits include reduced calibration frequency for monitoring equipment, reduced monitoring and reporting requirements for regulatees without wastewater treatment to focus efforts on upgrades, flexibility in sampling location and volume measurements, and aligning sampling requirements with provincial requirements in specific circumstances. For example, at an average cost of $1,800 for each calibration, reducing the frequency of calibrating the monitoring equipment from annually to that of the manufacturer’s recommendations (assumed to be once every four years) will result in three fewer calibrations during every four-year cycle for each of the 1 525 regulatees over the 20-year period. The monetized benefits from the administrative/operational changes are estimated at $49.0 million over the 20-year period, of which the majority ($34.0 million) is due to reducing the frequency of calibration of monitoring equipment. There are no monetized benefits for the Department.

Overall, the Amendments are estimated to result in benefits totalling $61.2 million.

Net impact

A summary of the net impact for all of the Amendments is presented in Table 3 below. The net impact is calculated as total benefits minus total costs. The cost savings to regulatees and the Department are expected to be $48.0 million greater than the additional costs, which means the Amendments will result in a net benefit.

Table 3: Summary of monetized costs and benefits (in thousands of dollars)
Impacts 2024 2025–2042 2043 Total Annualized value
Total costs $3,979 $8,986 $249 $13,216 $888
Total benefits $8,638 $50,650 $1,955 $61,243 $4,116
Net Impact $4,659 $41,664 $1,706 $48,027 $3,229

Small business lens

There are 34 privately owned wastewater systems subject to the Regulations. According to public data on the number of employees and annual revenue for each wastewater system owned or operated by a business, only one was identified as being owned by a small business (under 100 employees and/or under $1 million in annual revenue). This regulatee will be impacted by some of the operational and administrative improvements. In 2022 prices, discounted to 2024 using a 3% discount rate, the total costs to this small business are estimated at $5,512 and benefits at $80,620, resulting in a net benefit of $75,108 over 10 years.

One-for-one rule

The one-for-one rule applies since there will be an increase in the administrative burden for 34 privately owned wastewater systems due to the Amendments. This will include businesses familiarizing themselves with the Amendments and new requirements for temporary bypass authorizations. Following the International Standard Cost Model Manual (PDF) and using a 7% discount rate, the annualized increase in administrative costs for each affected business is $15.98 and total annualized administrative costs are $543 (in 2012 Canadian dollars). This represents an “IN” under the rule.

Regulatory cooperation and alignment

The Amendments will not have significant impacts related to any international agreement, obligation and/or voluntary standard. Canada and the United States are party to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, which commits both countries to control pollution and clean up industrial effluents and wastewater effluents. The current Regulations already support improving transboundary water quality by addressing the most significant sources of undertreated wastewater and establishing achievable timelines to complete the necessary installations and upgrades. The Amendments will not deviate from the original objective or timelines of the Regulations.

Significant analysis was done on provincial regulatory regimes to limit new or duplicate requirements, while taking into account the differences between provinces.

The Fisheries Act allows for agreements between the federal and provincial/territorial governments. These agreements are designed to reduce regulatory duplication and enhance cooperation amongst different levels of government. Under the Regulations, there are currently four agreements in place (two equivalency agreements and two administrative agreements).

The two equivalency agreements affect approximately 650 regulatees in Quebec and Yukon. The equivalency agreements and the Orders in Council that put them into effect stand down the Regulations and subsection 36(3) of the Fisheries Act for releases authorized by the Regulations in both jurisdictions. As part of the administration of the Canada-Quebec and Canada-Yukon equivalency agreements, Canada has provided written notice to the partnering governments of its intention to amend the Regulations, respecting the six-month written notice requirement of the equivalency agreements.

Following the coming into force of regulatory amendments, and as per section 4.2 of the Fisheries Act, a new equivalency assessment of Quebec and Yukon’s regimes will need to be completed to determine if provincial regulatory requirements are equivalent in effect to the requirements of the amended Regulations. Once this assessment is completed, the Department will determine whether any changes to the current equivalency agreements or accompanying Orders in Council are warranted.

Quebec views the Amendments as adding consistency and reducing regulatory burden for regulatees by allowing for authorizations to be provided under the Fisheries Act for releases due to maintenance activities throughout the wastewater system. Quebec sees this as an opportunity to better align the provincial and federal regimes by expanding temporary bypass authorizations to include releases from the sewer system. Quebec wants to ensure that both regimes remain equivalent so that the agreement can remain in effect without imposing additional burden on regulatees. The amended Regulations will require a new equivalency assessment and new Order in Council if equivalency with the new requirements can be achieved. Yukon has not expressed any concerns with the Amendments.

In addition to the two equivalency agreements, there are also two administrative agreements in place with New Brunswick and Saskatchewan. These agreements allow New Brunswick and Saskatchewan to administer the Regulations on behalf of the Department. It allows a single window for regulatees to report to the province and Department and reduces duplication. Both the federal and provincial regulations apply in these provinces.

Provinces with administrative agreements were generally supportive of the Amendments. In particular, they noted that the temporary bypass and administrative and operational amendments will provide greater clarity for regulatees.

Strategic environmental assessment

A strategic environmental assessment was conducted to highlight the potential direct and indirect positive and negative environmental effects of the Amendments.

The Amendments will contribute to the 2022 to 2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy goals of “Ensure Safe and Clean Drinking Water for all Canadians”; “Conserve and Protect Canada’s Oceans”; “Protect and Recover Species, Conserve Canadian Biodiversity.” The Amendments will also contribute to the United Nations 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): “Good Health and Well-Being” (SDG #3); “Clean Water and Sanitation” (SDG #6); and “Life Below Water” (SDG #14). In support of these goals, the federal government will use legislation and regulations, and continue to implement regulations under the Fisheries Act, to reduce risks from wastewater and industrial effluent.

Gender-based analysis plus

Geographic location is an important determinant of which communities will be most impacted by the Amendments related to transitional authorizations. Wastewater infrastructure upgrades are funded in part from municipal taxes and usage rates, and the stability and vulnerability of funding sources are important considerations. The majority (84%) of potentially eligible wastewater systems are located in Newfoundland and Labrador. Most of these wastewater systems are located in small, rural communities that have declining and aging populations with a limited tax base and other financial resources for infrastructure projects.

Implementing the amendments to the transitional authorization provisions disproportionately benefits households in small, rural communities, primarily in Newfoundland and Labrador. The Amendments will provide clear expectations and timelines for these small communities to upgrade their wastewater treatment systems. Bringing these communities into compliance with the Amendments will also support applications for funding programs, as they are typically tied to regulatory compliance. Implementation of the Amendments will also reduce wastewater monitoring and reporting frequency, which substantially decreases ongoing costs, allowing communities to prioritize limited funding resources towards building wastewater systems.

Under the current Regulations, Indigenous communities and municipalities downstream of wastewater treatment systems could be negatively impacted from releases of undertreated effluent for maintenance and repairs. These temporary releases can have short-term negative impacts on the use of water for recreation, drinking and fishing. Further, water holds great cultural, spiritual and socio-economic value for all Indigenous groups in Canada. Indigenous communities and organizations have expressed concern over how undertreated wastewater releases have been handled by the Department.

Poor water quality sometimes associated with these releases can result in temporary beach closures and impacts to tourism and recreation. It can also put all Canadians’ health at risk from the consumption of contaminated fish. Canadians that recreationally use water (lakes, rivers, oceans) may also be affected by releases of undertreated or untreated wastewater. The most common age group to swim in waterways was found to be children aged one to nine.footnote 11 Children are also more likely to ingest water, which can put them at a greater risk for waterborne illnesses.

The Amendments to the temporary bypass authorization provisions will allow for more oversight for higher-risk releases to the environment. This approach requires a study that outlines potential environmental impacts and more consideration of options to avoid a release or reduce impacts. It requires monitoring during and after releases so that data will be available to assess actual impacts and plans to reduce reoccurrences in the long term. This approach includes requirements to notify Indigenous communities and groups, nearby communities and the public, in advance of any releases that could impact them. This will allow the public to prepare accordingly, ensure their safety if using waters recreationally and provide an opportunity for interested persons to engage and learn more about the work being conducted.

The application timelines for a temporary bypass authorization have been adjusted so that the Department can engage the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, which will ensure anyone harvesting or consuming harvested shellfish downstream are adequately notified when there are releases that may impact the safe consumption of fish.

Implementation, compliance and enforcement, and service standards

Implementation

The Amendments will come into force on the day on which they are registered. A delayed coming into force is not necessary as authorizations that are already in place at the time of the coming into force will continue to be in effect. In addition, the temporary bypass authorization provisions will formalize existing best practices and provide additional flexibility. The approach for temporary bypass authorizations will primarily target higher-risk releases and it is expected that regulatees proposing these releases will be able to meet the new application requirements upon the coming into force of the Amendments. After the coming into force, regulatees will continue to be required to submit reports to the Department, and this information will be used to measure compliance with the amended Regulations.

The performance of the Amendments will be tracked through reporting requirements and enforcement activities. Most of the performance measurement indicators are and will continue to be made available publicly on an annual basis in the form of open data, open maps and an annual report that are published on the Department’s website. A publicly accessible registry of transitional authorizations and temporary bypass authorizations will also be developed.

The Department is responsible for conducting yearly follow-up on data received from regulatees to determine levels of compliance. Results of the follow-up will provide the federal government with the required information for yearly reporting in the Departmental Results Reports, and the Annual Report to Parliament on the Administration and Enforcement of the Fisheries Protection and Pollution Prevention Provisions of the Fisheries Act.

Compliance and enforcement

The compliance promotion approach for the Amendments will include providing plain language summaries to regulatees to assist with understanding the Amendments, circulating detailed guidance documents for amended authorization provisions, presenting at conferences and information sessions, as well as responding to all inquiries or clarification requests sent by stakeholders and interested parties. The Department will also provide information to key associations that support their members with regulatory compliance.

Verification of compliance with the amended Regulations and the Fisheries Act will continue to be carried out through inspection activities, including site visits, sample analysis, and review of reports required under the Regulations. An enforcement officer may conduct an investigation when there are reasonable grounds to believe that a violation is being or has been committed. Enforcement officers will verify compliance with the amended Regulations in accordance with the Compliance and Enforcement Policy. If there were evidence of an alleged violation, enforcement officers will determine an appropriate enforcement action, in accordance with the Policy. The Policy sets out the range of possible responses to alleged violations, including the issuance of warnings, directions, ministerial orders, and/or court actions such as injunctions, prosecution, and penalties, such as fines and court orders upon conviction and civil suits for recovery of costs. The Policy sets out principles of fair, predictable, and consistent enforcement that govern the application of the Fisheries Act and its regulations.

Service standards

The Department has established service standards to process transitional authorization and temporary bypass authorization requests in a consistent and timely manner. Transitional authorization applications will be evaluated within 90 days of submission. Temporary bypass authorization requests will need to be submitted either 21, 45, or 90 days in advance (for low-, medium- and high-risk releases, respectively) to provide adequate time for the Department’s review and decision.

Contacts

Caroline Blais
Director
Forest Products and Fisheries Act Division
Environment and Climate Change Canada
351 Saint-Joseph Boulevard
Gatineau, Quebec
J8Y 3Z5
Telephone: 819‑918‑3778
Email: eu-ww@ec.gc.ca

Matthew Watkinson
Executive Director
Regulatory Analysis and Valuation Division
Environment and Climate Change Canada
351 Saint-Joseph Boulevard
Gatineau, Quebec
J8Y 3Z5
Telephone: 613‑316‑1410
Email: ravd-darv@ec.gc.ca